Cross-check: (Left) Ryan Yerrick and Richard Bruner, the new owners of the Dayton Gems… more

Will 3,000 people pay to see hockey in Dayton?

Richard Bruner and Ryan Yerrick hope so. They need at least that many people at Hara Arena each home game to turn their resurrection of the Dayton Gems hockey team into a viable business. Armed with a $2.1 million operating budget this year — including $75,000 for advertising — the new owners recently launched a media blitz that includes television spots and billboards.

Cross-check: (Left) Ryan Yerrick and Richard Bruner, the new owners of the Dayton Gems… more

The Gems, whose season kicks off Oct. 16, is the Dayton area’s sole professional hockey team since the Dayton Bombers ceased operations earlier this year after 18 years in business.

The original Dayton Gems played at Hara from 1964 to 1980, minus a few seasons in the 1970s, and still evoke sentiment from some locals. The new team even hired two players from the original franchise: Guy Trottier, as director of hockey operations, and Warren Back, to head business affairs.

“We wanted to tap into that nostalgia,” Yerrick said.

But the owners know for the team to succeed, it will take more than nostalgia. It requires strong attendance and a stream of sponsorship dollars.

The Gems already signed about 30 sponsors and expect more by the time it starts regular season play. The list includes Dayton-based Fricker’s USA, Heidelberg Distributing, Supper Subby’s, Kettering Health Network and several fast food restaurants. Sponsorships start at $800 and benefits can include in-ice logos, in-game promotions, penalty kill announcements and video board commercials.

While interest appears to be high, Bruner and Yerrick still have their work cut out for them because hockey in Dayton has been a roller coaster ride. Since the original Gems stopped playing in 1980, several other professional hockey teams have come and gone including the Bombers.

To attract and keep fans, the duo is teaming up with Hara Arena owners to share the cost of upgrading the 5,500-seat venue with improvements such as new locker rooms and glass surrounding the ice, a fresh coat of paint and a team store. Bruner said the price tag for improvements will hit half a million dollars by the end of the season and more than $1 million in upgrades, including a new parking lot and concourse tiles, are planned before the second season.

In spite of the buzz, the Gems have only sold 300 season tickets so far. Bruner said because of the economy, many fans feel like their budget can only handle buying single-game tickets. But Bruner has countered by offering payment plans and free parking with season tickets. As a perk, the Gems also will offer a V.I.P. lounge for season ticket holders where prior to every game, the coach will to arrive to provide a game plan and take questions.

Season tickets range from $350 to $550.

Bruner admits hockey interest has dwindled in Dayton over the last few years because it’s tough to keep fan interest in an age where bigger, better and newer is what sells. He hopes to captivate audiences with more than just quality hockey, pointing to the Dayton Dragons as an example.

“They put on a great show,” he said. “It’s an entertainment value package.”

To keep fans entertained — and draw even non-hockey fans — the Gems will offer promotions at every home game. Entertainment will include bed races, a $25,000 chuck-a-puck contest and national acts such as Zooperstars, a mascot comedy troupe. Intermission at one game will feature ‘gemstones in the dark’, where several engaged women are blindfolded and get 45 seconds to find a diamond in a black bag on the ice.

The Gems will play 76 games this season, including 38 at Hara Arena, in the International Hockey League. Yerrick calls the IHL the top-tier of the AA minor leagues, slightly above the league where the Bombers played.

Peter Titlebaum, who teaches sports management and sports marketing at University of Dayton, said the biggest challenge for the Gems will be persuading those used to driving to the Nutter Center for hockey — where the Bombers played — to come to a different place for a game.

But Dayton boasts a loyal hockey fan base and the game translates better in person than on television, insiders say. Titlebaum said the Gems need to play up the intimate setting at Hara while overcoming the perception by some that it’s an outdated venue. He suggests marketing the improvements, as well as the history at Hara, will help.

The Dayton Gems venture started in February when the Ft. Wayne, Ind., businessmen decided to get into the hockey market. After expressing interest to different leagues and traveling the Midwest, Bruner said Hara Arena officials caught wind of the plans and approached them. A short time later things fell into place and the Dayton Gems were back on the map.

Bruner, a hockey fan, admits having “a touch of ADD” drove him to the fast-paced sport while Yerrick was raised playing hockey. The two said recent reports about the bankruptcy of their Ft. Wayne-based pizza restaurant chain and several lawsuits over related leases will have no affect on Gems operations.

The Gems play an exhibition game at Hara Oct. 8 against the Toledo Walleye and then face the Ft. Wayne Comets in the regular season home opener.

The team’s roster will include 21 players and nine staff. Single-game ticket prices start at $13 and go up to $18 with kids under 12 getting in for half price. Discounts also are available for students, military, seniors, disabled and police and emergency workers.

The team is working to put together a radio broadcast deal and road games are scheduled to be shown at local Fricker’s via the league’s Internet network. Bruner and Yerrick also are looking to affiliate with a higher-level minor league team that feeds directly to the National Hockey League.

They said Gems fans will see a different type of hockey than what’s been seen in Dayton because the IHL has a broader mix of veteran and younger players than the ECHL, the league where the Bombers played.

“It’s more like old-time hockey,” Yerrick said. “It’s not a goon league, but it’s definitely more physical and we plan to be very competitive on the ice.”